American Idol

I have Sirius radio and one of the "benefits" of that is the ability to listen to Howard Stern. I tuned in last fall while driving to Durham and that has been the last time. I listened to him a few times when he was with the network L.A. radio station and, although not to my taste, I could appreciate his attraction to many. I still understand the attraction he has on cable. The term "arrested development" comes to mind. The show is audio porn and not particularly good at that.

Recently Mr. Stern (I say with my best librarian tone) thought how it would be "funny as hell" for the worst contestant, Sanjaya Malakar, to win the contest. Stern urged his fans to respond by voting for Sanjaya. Their vote may be making a difference because Sanjaya has been able to remain in contention to the shock and dismay of the judges and many of the viewers.

Or, his staying power might be partly attributed to his support from other Indian-Americans or even from India. But there have been other minorities in past shows that undoubtedly got votes based on ethnicity but not sufficiently large to truly sway the outcome. Perhaps he has something of an Michael Jackson aura for many young fans that defies the need for talent.

In the past we have seen other contestants briefly prevail despite lack of talent, on this show and others such as Dancing With The Stars (remember Master P). To persevere for more then a two or three episodes in the face of such poor performance becomes a travesty.

Possibly American Idol may have seen its last season if Sanjaya wins. I like Sanjaya as a person but he is clearly out of his league and seriously short of real talent. Simon Cowell has threatened to quit the show if Sanjaya wins. Viewers may become disenchanted. Even if Sanjaya eventually goes, American Idol may need to revamp its voting system if he continues much longer.

There is no question in my mind that Howard Stern has a large fan base capable of responding to his juvenile behavior. Never mind that it crushes the hopes of other more genuinely talented people and ruins the viewing entertainment of the audience. Sure, American Idol has its problems, Simon Cowel for example, sometimes displays that "honesty" I've heard people use as an excuse for insensitive bashing of others - "I'm just being honest."

And Howard Stern? He is like those that impose wanton destruction on others - unprovoked gratuitous maliciousness. Regardless how it develops with Sanjaya, I have a vote. Sirius wants me to renew my subscription. I vote not to. True, I'll miss out on Martha Stewart's program but in life you must make tough choices, sorry Martha.